Members of the public are invited to help harvest Dos Aguilas olives this weekend in exchange for the Aptos grower's award-winning extra-virgin olive oil.

A person can handpick about a pound of olives a minute. For every 100 pounds harvested, the picker will receive a 750-milliliter (wine) bottle of Dos Aguilas EVOO valued at $36. Alternatively, pickers can split their complimentary oil into two bottles: one of Olio Nuovo, straight from the press, and a second bottling of finished oil that will be ready in March.

The pick will be Saturday and Sunday. Register at www.dosaguilasoil.com by calling Roger at 252-0752. In the event of rain, the pick will be postponed for Jan. 12-13 and a notice posted on the website.

A release party is set for March 17 and will include oil and wine tastings, appetizers, cured olives -- attendees are encouraged to bring their own -- and bocci ball.

Cellar Door, as it was called back then, opened in 2009 in the Swift Street Courtyard. A rebranding strategy nine months ago brought the new name -- Le Cigare Volant was a nod both to "Frasier" and to the wine that put Randall Grahm's vineyard on the map -- and a new chef, Ryan Shelton from the Michelin two-starred Baume in Palo Alto.

Following a holiday break, the tasting room at 328 Ingalls St. will reopen at noon Jan. 9 with tasting flights, wines by the glass and retail sales. Hours from then on will be noon to 6 p.m. Call 425-4518 or visit www.bonnydoonvineyard.com.

Jan. 14 deadline nears for Whole Foods Market vendor search

Whole Foods Market next month will host its Next Entrepreneur event, meant to draw local vendors interested in presenting products to the supermarket's purchasing team. The deadline is Jan. 14 to submit an application, available online at http://nc.wholefoods.com/localvendor/.

The Next Entrepreneur event will be 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Feb. 6 at the Oakland Scottish Rite Center. The day will also include education sessions meant to assist vendors with growing their businesses and connect them with contacts for packaging, loans, production and distribution.

Gluten-free series starts Tuesday at New Leaf

New Leaf in Westside Santa Cruz on Tuesday will kick off a six-week cooking series featuring gluten-free, dairy-free and low-glycemic-index foods that are high in protein and fiber.

Chef Lauren Hoover-West will cover the basic three meals in the series, which runs $200, along with snacks, beverages and dessert. Local naturopath Brad West joins her to inform attendees about fats and other nutrition topics.

Let's Cook! Santa Cruz, the recreational cooking school in Soquel, is celebrating its first anniversary this month with a discount offer. Classes and gift certificates purchased online in January with the code "1yearthanks" will be 15 percent off. This includes:

Saturday's bacon-making class with Quentin Levy, who will demonstrate how to salt, smoke and cure pork belly from Fogline Farms;

Cooking Basics: Roasting and Broiling with Eric Carter, set for Jan. 9, and Carter's knife-skills class on Jan. 17;

A Taste of Burgundy, France, with Jonathan Miller on Jan. 11;

Breakfast of Champions with Curt Pieratt on Jan. 19, which will cover egg basics from scrambling to poaching;

Quick Bites, your weekly helping of Santa Cruz County restaurant and food news, is compiled by local food writer Laura Copeland. Contact her at sentinelfood@gmail.com. Want local food and wine news as it happens? Follow the Sentinel's food crew on Twitter, @santacruzfood.